Abstract

Transgenic Hibiscus sabdariffa plants have been produced by a tissue culture independent method using Agrobacterium tumefasciens transformation procedure. Embryo axes of mature seeds with one cotyledon excised were infected by immersion in a suspension of Agrobacterium LBA 4404 strain culture that carries pBal plasmid with β-glucuronidase p35SGUSINT and plant selectable marker Neomycin Phospho-Transferase gene (nptII). Following a 24 h co-cultivation with Agrobacterium strain and decontamination with cefotaxime, embryos were grown on soil rite containing MS medium added with a killer concentration of kanamycin (100 µg/ml) during 4 weeks at room conditions and thereafter transferred to greenhouse. 54.3% of the seedlings grew well on the selective medium; 68% of the explants excised from putative transformed plants were found to be GUS positive. After 60 days evaluation point, the assessment of the transformation by PCR revealed that H. sabdariffa line tested, carried the nptII gene.

Key words: Hibiscus sabdariffa, genetic transformation.